The present invention relates to an improved gas/liquid separator for a gas analyzer of the type used to analyze gases exhaled by a patient.
In the past, gas analyzers have been used to monitor the composition of gases exhaled by a patient. For example, CO.sub.2 concentration can be used to monitor the physiology of a patient, as for example during a surgical procedure. It has been recognized for some time that a gas/liquid separator is needed to remove liquids exhaled by the patient to prevent these liquids from entering the gas analyzer. U.S. Pat. No. 4,304,578 to Hakala et al discloses one such prior art water separator for a gas analyzer.
However, this separator of the prior art is not without its disadvantages. In particular, when the water content of the fluid entering the separator exceeds the capacity of the separator, the separator can pass liquid to the gas analyzer. When this happens, optical components of the gas analyzer can be fouled, thereby interrupting the operation of the gas analyzer. Typically, when liquid enters the gas analyzer the analyzer must be taken off line and cleaned before it is again capable of providing reliable measurements of gas content.
A need presently exists for an improved water separator for use with such gas analyzers, which provides improved separation of water, which is simple and inexpensive to manufacture from materials such as suitable plastics, and which passes the sample through the separator with a minimum of turbulence and mixing.